My Friendship With Faruqi

8/3/2019 My Friendship With Faruqi

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/my-friendship-with-faruqi 1/6

My Friendship withFaruqi .

Written By Dr. Sanat Trivedi



I was physically and mentally tired and exhausted. I had not taken any food for last 24 hours. I had not slept well. First time in my life I wasaway from my relatives. The room was not comfortable. There were lots of problems for settling in that new surroundings and new culture. My sweet dreams regarding rosy picture of U.S.A. was crushed.

At 9.00 am I thought for going to main school building to attend my lectures. I locked my room and entered in the lift for going to groundfloor. Lift stopped at eighth floor, and one Asian entered in the lift. Hewas of medium height, and moderately built.

He looked at me and asked me,‘Are you from India? ‘ I said ‘yes, but how do you know that I am from India?’.‘I read the information on the notice board and knew that some Indiandoctors are going to join the institution in this semester’ he replied.‘I am Faruqi and I am here for my doctorate study in health statistics.’

He introduce himself.‘I am Dr. Sanat Trivedi, and came here to study compressive healthplanning.’ I formerly introduced myself.‘From which country you have come?’ I inquired.‘From Karachi-Pakistan’ he replied.

I was little disappointed to know that he was from Pakistan. India andPakistan had no friendly relationship. As such there was war betweenIndia and Pakistan in 1971. As a common citizen of India I was nothaving good feeling for Pakistan.

By the time we reached to the ground floor, he casually asked me.‘Have you settled comfortably in this new surrounding?’ I could not reply. He realized that some thing was wrong. He took me tothe coffee shop and ordered good hot coffee for both of us. On coffee tableI told him everything regarding my problems and troubles. I also toldhim that ‘I have come to U.S.A with great hopes and expectations. But Iam totally disappointed. I am worried that how I will spend my next sixmonths over here’?

He realized and did understand my problems and my mental attitude.He told me that there was nothing to worry. It usually happened witheach foreigner who first time visits new country. The person getsaccustomed to new environment within short time. And every thing getssettled.

He was silent for some time and then he said,‘Let us go to the market, I will help you shopping the articles for you,which you required for your routine use’.



That day was not holiday. Going to the market on the working day meansloosing some important lectures. One can not afford to loose someimportant lectures, especially when the person is studying for his degreeof PHD. I told same thing to Faruqi. He told me not to worry about hisloosing lectures.

I agreed, and we both went to the down town. He took me to variousshopping places. He helped me to purchase necessary items. He alsotook me to some Indian restaurant, where I had good and satisfactory meal. For whole day we moved together. He showed me variousimportant places. He also showed me some good and reasonable foodshops, from where I could purchase food and drink for my daily meals.

By tha end of the day, I was totally relieved from my worries. On that day I had sound sleep.Now I had settled in new environment. Mentally and physically I wasconditioned to coop with new culture and surrounding.

Faruqi was my first friend in John Hopkins’ institution. Days passed.During my stay at that school, I had more friends and contacts. Some of them were Indians; some were Americans, some from Egypt and two fromBangladesh.

It was my routine to meet Faruqi every day in the evening. We used todiscuss various subjects, but we had never discussed politics or subjecton Indo-Pak relation. In the weekend together we used to go to the city down town, used to visit various places, and used to spend over weekendtogether.

One fine day I was in room, reading my books. Those two doctors fromBangladesh came to my room. We had our coffee. They had come to roomfor discussing certain points related to public health. I was narratingthem my field experience. From that point some how the subject of talkdrifted to 1971 Indo-Pak war. Then suddenly one of the doctors told me,‘you are good friend of Faruqi, but do you know that he had been toIndian jail for more than one year?.’

I was surprised and shocked to have such information. I was not ready tobelieve that statement. It is hardly believable that a nice person likeFaruqi can be in Indian jail. I refused to believe that information. Butthose two doctors told me that it was fact.

The information created turmoil in my mind. I was disturbed. Number of queries had irrupted on my mental screen. I was puzzled. I decided totalk with Faruqi to know real fact. Next day in the evening I went toFaruqi’s room. As usual we had coffee. Then I asked him directly,‘Faruqi, were you in Indian jail?’



I was hopping to hear ‘no’ from his mouth. But surprisingly he said ’yes’.‘How come, you were prisoner in India?’ I asked .‘I was prisoner of war’. He replied.‘Were you Prisoner of war? Were you in the army of Pakistan?’. I wasgetting more and more surprises. As such he had never informed me that

he served Pakistan army.‘No, I was not in the army any time in my life.’ That was his reply. I wasvery curious to know the facts about the past life of Faruqi. Finally hetold me his real story.Let us listen his story in his own words.

‘I was working as statistician. I was sent to Dhaka [capital of Bangladesh] to collect certain important data regarding community health. Istayed in one of the hotel of Dhaka. But unfortunately war broke duringthat time between India and Pakistan.I tried to return to Karachi, but Icould not get the flight, because all the civil air services were suspended

because of war. At the end of the war, Indian army entered Dhaka. Iwas arrested along with other Pakistani visitors. We were taken to army prison. I stayed there for more than year. And at the end along with otherprisoners of war, I was relieved.’

I was relieved. But shocked to listen his story. As such he was not atfault; he was the victim of unfavorable circumstances. That incidencehad happened, just after his marriage. I could imagine the mentalturmoil and frustration of the person, who has to live in the jail, justafter his marriage, without his fault. I tried to put myself in the samecircumstances. I realized that if I would have been in the enemy jail, howmuch hatred I would have created for that nation.

I asked him.‘Faruqi, tell me very frankly, did such incidence created any feeling of hatred for India, and each Indian?’

‘In spite of such awful incidence, in spite your personal harassment by my nation, you helped me on my first day in Baltimore. Not only that

you have maintained very good friendly relationship with one Indian,whose country has put you in jail without any fault, and kept you away from your family’? I added‘Sanat, were you responsible for that war.’? He asked me.‘No, as such I hate wars.’ I replied.

Then he told me,

“Sanat, war between two nations are mostly the outcome of the strainedpolitical relationship. Wars are declared and fought for various reasons.Most of the time, it is for the purpose of getting power. It is very strange



that one, who takes the decision of the war, never goes to the battle fieldto fight. He is always in the safe and much secured place. The person,who fights, is the paid soldier. His duty is to fight like machine. In thisgame the killer does not know who is killed. It may happen that twosoldiers of two nations, may go together to enjoy dinner, drink and dance

during peace time. But the same two soldiers, at the time of war willferociously fight with each other. And will try to kill each other. In thisgame killing other unknown human being is considered as sign of patriotism.

Sufferer during the war is common man. This common man suffers assoldier or as a civilian, without any fault of him. He is either killed on thebattle ground as a soldier, or as a civilian is deprived of vital necessitiesof life. In the war losers are common man, and beneficiaries are leaders.

Let us not waste our time in discussing the philosophy of war. If I had

been jailed, it was my misfortune. So stop thinking about the same. Letus go to some café and have nice dinner”

I was astounded with his reaction. I could perceive enormity of his heart.I perceived deep understanding of noble person.We remain good friend till I was in Baltimore. The day I left Baltimore, Ifelt deeply in my heart, that I was departing from one of my very goodfriend. I left my friend on that day, but not the friendship.

My Friendship With Faruqi

Documents

Transcript of My Friendship With Faruqi